Jets Hit al-Qaida Stronghold in Iraq

I don't know if this is old news....from the Forum.

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Comment below posted by: Justin Capone at September 7, 2005 11:23 AM

Terrorist near Syria found with plans for the attacks on the UK

MOSUL, Iraq -- A terrorist captured near the Syrian border last month had a computer "thumb drive" that contained planning information about the July 7 suicide bombings in London, according to a U.S. military officer.

Col. Robert Brown, commander of the 1st Brigade 25th Infantry Division in Mosul, said that the man was captured north of Qaim in western Iraq and that authorities had connected him to the al Qaeda terrorist network.

It is the first evidence of a link between the London bombs and terrorists in Iraq, but fits with other evidence of a growing presence in Iraq by al Qaeda, which has taken responsibility for the British attacks.

Col. Brown declined to discuss the specific nature of the information on the thumb drive -- a miniature data storage device that plugs into a computer's USB port -- but said it indicated al Qaeda involvement in the attacks on London's bus and subway system.

"I don't think anyone's done a good enough job explaining" the relationship between Iraq and al Qaeda, he said.

Bashar al-Naher, an adviser to Iraqi Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari, told The Washington Times that he had not heard about the Mosul discovery but said, "This does not surprise me. We are noting a pattern of involvement by [Iraqi hard-liners] in terrorist plots abroad."

The rest of the comment:

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http://www.washtimes.com/world/20050906-102658-7545r.htm
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Basically, what this shows is what I have believed for some time that Zarqawi does have operation oversight over much of al-Qaeda, especailly in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. And, that he doesn't want attacks linked back to him in Iraq, because that would hurt his goal of getting Western publics to decide Iraq isn't worth it and give up the fight.

That is why Zarqawi had some BS group first claim credit for the attacks on our ships in Jordan and he only admitted that he was behind them a week later after they captured some of his men, by that time everyone knew he was behind it anyway.

Basically, Zarqawi wants to spread his operations, but doesn't want the world community to know he is spreading them, because he relies on the publics in America and Europe saying the war is wrong and that they want the troops home, because they are tired of the whole thing. Zarqawi knows that if he comes right out and hits Europe hard with a spectacular and does what Bin Laden did after 911, which was basically come out with video after video taunting and gloating. Then you are going to see support for the US mission in Iraq flip from 20% to 80% overnight.

I suspect Zarqawi will keep supporting mid to low intensity attacks like Madrid and London. He might go for a spectacular, but I suspect he will do so only after he is sure he can't win in Iraq.

"Basically, Zarqawi wants to spread his operations, but doesn't want the world community to know he is spreading them, because he relies on the publics in America and Europe saying the war is wrong and that they want the troops home, because they are tired of the whole thing. Zarqawi knows that if he comes right out and hits Europe hard with a spectacular and does what Bin Laden did after 911, which was basically come out with video after video taunting and gloating. Then you are going to see support for the US mission in Iraq flip from 20% to 80% overnight.

I suspect Zarqawi will keep supporting mid to low intensity attacks like Madrid and London. He might go for a spectacular, but I suspect he will do so only after he is sure he can't win in Iraq.

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I like your analysis. It makes perfect sense.

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